Zhagana, a fairyland-like village in Stone City
Zhagana is a famous scenic spot in Gannan. Walking from Langmusi to Zhagana, the road is newly built, flat and spacious, and runs along the valley formed by Bailong River. The mountains and rivers are beautiful, as if you are in a valley in the south. Many tall trees surround the small Tibetan villages. The highland barley in the field has begun to turn yellow.
"Zhagana" is Tibetan, meaning "stone box". The terrain here is surrounded by white stone peaks. These huge peaks are like blocks of stone walls, surrounding Zhagana into a stone city, or a huge palace on a grand scale, where four Tibetan villages and a temple are built. In this huge stone city. Coming from the outside, passing through the natural stone gate formed by two opposing peaks, and entering Zhagana, it feels like you have entered a paradise. Many people come here for tourism, and people who love photography also like it here.
When we arrived at Zhagana, the weather was amazingly good. Follow the plank road up to the east mountain. The hillside full of wild flowers has a nice name called Fairy Beach. Standing on the viewing platform, you have a panoramic view of the entire Zhagana. Under the sunlight at different times, the village shows different colors. Of course, the most classic view here is the afterglow of the setting sun, which casts thousands of beams of light onto the golden roofs of villages and temples at the last moment before going down the mountain.
The weather in the mountains changes at any time, and is even more capricious than the weather in the grassland. We came down the mountain after taking pictures of the sunset in the evening. The weather was just fine, but suddenly hail and heavy rain came. After a night of rain, another classic scenery of Zhagana appeared the next morning: morning mist lingered over stone mountains, villages, and temples. At this time, Zhagana was really like a fairyland. Climbing to the west observation deck, Zhagana appears in front of you in another attitude. The clouds and mists come and go with the wind, and the mountain peaks and villages appear and disappear. The highland barley that has been thoroughly washed by the rain is green and full of life.
High up in Zhagana, there is a Lasang Temple, which the locals call the Lasang Great Temple. The main halls of the temple are not very large, but they are all magnificent. There is a huge prayer wheel in front of the front hall, which looks quite old. There are also yak skulls placed in the middle of the prayer wheels surrounding the main hall, with the scriptures written on them very beautifully. The temple is undergoing extensive construction work, and it is muddy after the rain, but this does not prevent the Tibetan old man and old lady from climbing up the mountain early in the morning, simmering mulberry in front of the golden pagoda, and praying around the temple. They are very pious.
There are four villages in Zhagana, scattered on the hillside, with rows of wooden hidden houses. Walking around the village is very quiet. Occasionally you can meet Tibetan villagers, and there are many century-old houses in the village. Perhaps because of the development of tourism, too many tall B&Bs have been built in the first three villages, which look too new. Yeri Village, located at the highest point, was probably least affected and retained more of its original appearance. The village is built on a mountain and is surrounded by wheat fields.
As early as nearly a hundred years ago, American botanist Joseph Locke came here and was shocked by the beauty of Zagana, calling it the birthplace of Adam and Eve. From the back mountain of Zhagana, you can reach Zhuoni by crossing Guanggai Mountain, passing through the century-old Zangzhai Niba Village and the century-old Gongba Temple. Locke used 46 pages and 49 pictures to comprehensively describe the folk customs and beautiful scenery of this area in the November 1928 issue of National Geographic magazine. The road he traveled is also known as "Locke's Journey". road". Unfortunately, the road is currently under construction and is impassable. Come back next time with a little regret.